The subject matter described and/or illustrated herein relates generally to electrical connector assemblies, and more particularly, to electrical connector assemblies for pluggable electrical components.
Some known electrical connector assemblies include a metal cage having one or more ports that each receive a pluggable electrical component therein, such as, but not limited to, a small form factor pluggable (SFP) module. The pluggable components may plug into an electrical connector that is held within the cage and is electrically connected to a host circuit board. An end of the cage that includes the ports for the pluggable electrical components is typically held within a panel of a housing that contains the host circuit board therein. For example, the housing may be a housing for a computer that includes the host circuit board. The end of the cage that is held within the panel typically includes a plurality of springs that are either formed integrally from a wall thereof or are formed from another material and attached to the cage member. The springs extend circumferentially about the end of the cage and exert a spring force on an interior surface of the panel opening that receives the cage end to securely hold the cage end within the panel opening. The springs also facilitate containing electromagnetic interference (EMI) emissions by providing a plurality of contact points that ground the cage to the panel.
Each port of the cage typically includes a spring latch that cooperates with a latch element of the corresponding pluggable electrical component to latch the pluggable electrical component to the cage. However, when the cage is held within the panel, a gap exists between the spring latch and the panel. The gap may allow EMI emissions to leak therethrough during use of the electrical connector assembly.
There is a need for an electrical connector assembly for pluggable electrical components that reduces leakage of EMI emissions in connection with spring latch members.